#1:  When doing work, put away the phone

            Although I can’t speak for myself, I know there are a lot of people that have a hard time putting down their phone for any reason.  If you are trying to be productive a great way to not waste time on your phone is by not having it around.  If you absolutely must have your phone, put it on silent (no vibrations either) and turn it upside down so you can’t see when someone texts/emails you.  This way, you can eliminate a ton of distractions while getting things done. 

#2: Keep your schedule visible

            If you have a planner already to see exam dates and everything that is already one step closer than a lot of people are.  But, what about when you forget to look a week in advance and realize you have a huge exam coming up for you needed way more time to prepare for?  A great solution to staying on top of future deadlines is by keeping all your deadlines visible to you.  This is something I do and it is probably the best thing I have come up with for myself.  On my dry erase board above my bed I simply write down every day of the next three weeks and what is due that day for all of my classes.  This way, you’ll never forget to plan enough in advance and take some future stress off your shoulders.

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#3: Probably won’t want to, but get rid of your social networking apps

           I’m not saying that you need to entirely give up Facebook, Twitter or whatever it is that you probably seem absolutely addicted to.  Just delete the app for it on your phone so it’s not so easily accessible to yourself.  You can still get on it, but having to open your phone, open the internet, get it up on the page, etc.,  makes it a lot less tempting then clicking an app and having your entire Facebook page open and ready to go.   At least try it, you wouldn’t believe the amount of time people have saved just by doing this.

#4: For girls, you don’t have to take forever to look good

            I know and see a lot of girls who will take an extremely long time to get ready for the day. I’m not saying look like a hobo, but take maybe ten minutes or so to do your hair and you should be good to go. In college, there is absolutely no reason to be taking that long.  The day of an exam, is it seriously worth taking an extra hour to curl your hair instead of studying?  You’re hair is just going to get messed up and slept on in a couple hours anyway.  Overall, academics over people’s opinions really need to start programming into everyone’s heads.  If that kid you’re trying to impress looks the other way because you didn’t take a ridiculous amount of time to get ready, then get your degree, be great at what you do and realize how much better off you are having a successful career than flattering some kid in one of your classes for a semester.

Here’s a site I found on some of the biggest ways people waste time without realizing it.  So, if you read it and realize you do it, you should probably stop that too.